Hiring a web hosting service?

My Dad said he designs his own sites through iWeb. I wonder if any of you've used it? He would do it(family discount applies) for me. Web designing is a whole new field to me. As I said above, I appreciate all the feedbacks I've been getting.
 
dereksbicycles said:
What I'll be doing almost every day is adding inventories. I figure that if items sell, then they'll be automatically deleted, right?
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Try bigcommerce.com or some other turn-key e-commerce service. They do everything, I mean literally EVERYTHING. Automatic inventory management, SEO, newsletters, CC processing, customizing look and feel, forums, live chat, tech support, etc....
 
dereksbicycles said:
My Dad said he designs his own sites through iWeb. I wonder if any of you've used it? He would do it(family discount applies) for me. Web designing is a whole new field to me. As I said above, I appreciate all the feedbacks I've been getting.
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I used iWeb for group business project and it is easy to use.

You need to mess with iWeb and check the instruction.
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iWeb_Getting_Started.pdf
How to Create a Website Using iWeb | Bare Feet Blog
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMHmaP79Jx4]Getting Started With iWeb - YouTube[/ame]
 
Not looking to change functions or different ways to use site.

The simplier, the better.

I want to be able to have different cover pictures and maybe different pictures for lay outs, but way to use site must be same.
 
dereksbicycles said:
So basically, I would like a website developed for me. I would probably want design changed maybe every 3 or 4 months to keep people excited. Maybe change cover picture every 3 or 4 months.

What I'll be doing almost every day is adding inventories. I figure that if items sell, then they'll be automatically deleted, right?
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I hired 2 different people to develop websites for me. I found it to be a total waste of money. Like several here have said, it is very easy to do on your own if you have the time to do it. Since you are creative it will be a lot of fun for you most likely. Search engine optimization is pretty easy too...plenty of sites out there to help you with that. Personally, I think money would be better spent on a social media rep (blaster). I found that to be a much better way to increase site traffic. Search engine optimization is the big selling point developers use but it is really just a scam IMO.They do the same things that you can learn to do in 10 minutes. It takes a few months to see a real increase in hits....they know this and know people will panic if they do it themselves and don't see results right away. So they play on that fear. That's just my 2 cents. I would suggest doing it yourself and then getting a social media guru.

Edit: NoteI knew nothing...zero about techie stuff and I found it to be tremendously easy. Also Foxrac provided an awesome video to show you how easy it can be. And again, it was a lot of fun.
 
The outsourcing of web design may not bad idea but you are correct about waste of money. I rather to design the web by myself because I have skill and creative to develop the web, however I found most challenge to design is javascript and it is hard to use without have a lot of programming skill. It isn't bad to get a lot of help from closer relatives that have sufficient skill, also it is more trust and cheaper than outsourcing.
 
TXgolfer said:
I hired 2 different people to develop websites for me. I found it to be a total waste of money. Like several here have said, it is very easy to do on your own if you have the time to do it. Since you are creative it will be a lot of fun for you most likely. Search engine optimization is pretty easy too...plenty of sites out there to help you with that. Personally, I think money would be better spent on a social media rep (blaster). I found that to be a much better way to increase site traffic. Search engine optimization is the big selling point developers use but it is really just a scam IMO.They do the same things that you can learn to do in 10 minutes. It takes a few months to see a real increase in hits....they know this and know people will panic if they do it themselves and don't see results right away. So they play on that fear. That's just my 2 cents. I would suggest doing it yourself and then getting a social media guru.

Edit: NoteI knew nothing...zero about techie stuff and I found it to be tremendously easy. Also Foxrac provided an awesome video to show you how easy it can be. And again, it was a lot of fun.
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yep. that's the biggest problem. that's why I advised him very carefully to find a web developer who specializes in SEO, database, and ecommerce.

and yes you're right that there are a bunch who shamelessly uses SEO as a selling point when in fact they do a very shoddy job at it. It is indeed hard to find a trustworthy one especially if you do not know anything about it. It does help to know the subject enough to know if a candidate is bullshitting or not during interview. A key sign to look for - an SEO expert never ever promises you will see a result in a few months. never. if he did, jerk alert!

and yes SEO is easy to learn but if it's that easy - then everybody can do it without hiring expert but they didn't. why? because sure it's easy to start but it's very difficult to maintain and continually fine-tuning it to stay competitive. it's very time-consuming and demanding. it's as maddening as stock market addiction.

worst case scenario? he did not deliver the result as promised in a couple months or he got you into $$$$$ SEO bills (not his salary... you have to pay for SEO services like google adwords, link-building, pay-per-click, etc. or both.

SEO: The Free Beginner?s Guide From SEOmoz is a nice start to learn. I know this company. They did presentation at web conference and they're real deal but they're not cheap.

If you're very serious in having a website and to make it grow and to always maintain it with new stuff on frequent basis, then it's best to hire a front-end/back-end web developer to start with.... and then SEO expert.... and then social media marketer. you do not need to keep all 3. just hire a professional to do a specific job.... then let him go and hire another professional for another specific job... so on. it's a multi-tier process.

many small business owners hire one person to do everything and that's it. because of their disastrous disappointment with that person's job, they end up not hiring other person again because they lost confidence and the worst of all... quite a bit of their money.

Once in a while, I offer to do it for free or do some bartering with a local business if I really like it but I don't promise anything.
 
The way I see it, Derek could do it all himself, but he is starting from scratch. There would be a learning curve and who knows how long it would take to get really good at everything? Meanwhile, he could be giving up potential sales while he is trying to learn how to do it all himself.

If he pays a qualified expert to do the work, yes, it will cost money, and it could be a waste of money if the "expert" isn't qualified, but Derek could get going sooner and get some more sales.

Every business owner has to answer this question for him or herself. Whether to do the work oneself or pay someone else to do it. Whether one will ever be good enough at it that it is effective, or whether to pay an expert to do work that is 'guaranteed' to be effective.

About the business name, I'd 'brainstorm' a bunch of names on paper, try to find matching domain names for them, and check with your Secretary of State to register that business name. No point in registering a domain name if you can't also register the business name with your State government. You'll need that business name registration with your State government if you want to take checks or payment in that name. (A 'DBA' (doing business as) tag on your bank account. The bank will need proof you can operate under that name.)
 
1st webhost:
pro: it was free and I could talk to him at work if I needed anything.
con: he became impossible to contact after I moved.

2nd webhost:
pro: He was cheaper than the other hosts, and he helped me set up some of the web services I needed (mySQL, php, a few custom web services)
con: He would vanish for weeks at a time without warning. Of course, something would break while he was away. It wasn't free.

3rd webhost (current):
Pro: free, pay-as-you-go features, automated setup and maintenance through website
Con: Not much. Sometimes I forget their name because I rarely have to fix stuff.
 
I'm trying to figure what it would cost me if I hired someone to run a website for me every month? I don't know anything and would like to know what is fair.

Also, what may it cost in general to have website set up for me?
 
^^^ Insufficient information ^^^

It could be anywhere from free to millions of dollars.
 
I use Bigcommerce and I recommend them. I was fortunate to know a coder who helped design my website so everything was done for free (for the most part). Although, I had to learn a bit with creating banners, ads, etc. using Photoshop for my website but it was worth it and you can use the experience to create your own ads without having to pay someone else to do the job for you. Simple coding via backend is pretty easy to learn as well.

I must admit I haven't done SEO or add new products to my website as I've been very busy with other storefronts (eBay, Amazon, and now Buy.com) but I've been generating a good amount of sales and traffic by promoting my website through slickdeals.net. Basically, I haven't done much effort to promote my website but I'll probably have to hire a professional since I don't want to waste paying Bigcommerce $50 a month without putting in real effort.
 
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